Abstract

In the article, two significant cultural texts are juxtaposed: the trilogy titled The Battle of Monte Cassino by Melchior Wańkowicz and the 11th-century visual narrative of the Battle of Hastings, known as the Bayeux Tapestry. The analysis of both works revealed many similarities. The inclusion of the Norman context allows us to view the Polish reporter's account as part of the grand narratives of battles, where the conflict is portrayed in a multifaceted manner: through panoramic perspectives and attention to topographical details, in polyphonic voices and from the viewpoints of prominent individuals, in a precise and documentary style, but also considering the artistic components of the work. What perhaps most strongly connects both cultural texts is their rich illustrative layer. In the Bayeux Tapestry, visuality is undoubtedly the dominant narrative strategy, with only fragments of brief comments written in Latin. However, in Wańkowicz's reportage, the role of the visual sphere is also hard to overstate: it governs the trilogy's narrative flow alongside the text's suggestiveness. The extensive collection of photographs, illustrations, drawings, and maps that distinguish the first edition of the Battle of Monte Cassino series bears the unmistakable signature of Wańkowicz, who, during the interwar period, explored the possibility of coexistence between image and text. In the case of his pre-war editions, their coexistence in books was a signal of modernity for this young literary genre. Yet, in this analysis, it can be interpreted the other way: as a sign of a certain archaic quality in the narrative, evoking memories of ancient battle-themed paintings. One can say that Wańkowicz’s story unfolds like a tapestry in the three volumes of the reportage, distinguished by their characteristic text organization. It is among others this visual sphere, connecting both cultural texts, that ensures their continued distinction among other narratives of pivotal battles.